Performance JETS: A major leap forward with virtual machines (VM) for avionics systems

The Problem

A leading global systems supplier was building a Flight Management System (FMS) for a major aircraft manufacturer. Lacking the resource capacity with this unique engineering expertise, the supplier was in jeopardy of missing schedule, which would have jeopardized aircraft delivery to major airlines. Because of the larger-than anticipated scope tied to this highly-complex system, two main tasks required outside help:low-level requirements development and associated test creation and execution.

Without adequate development resources and the looming aircraft-certification milestone approaching, the company brought in Performance Software, a trusted technical partner from previous programs.The supplier provided Performance Software with all “available” target hardware, totaling 20 test units.Unfortunately, given the schedule crunch, this was 50 units short of what was needed to avoid missing the critical delivery schedule.

The Solution

With over 19,000 tests required in short order, a faster, more efficient way of testing was clearly needed.Understanding that such limited hardware would severely impact the program’s success due to lab resource “wait states” and poor debugging productivity, Performance Software deployed its JETS virtual machine (VM) to recover schedule.

In conjunction with the supplier’s development team, the JETS team quickly implemented the VMs required for the new platform and immediately accelerated the timeline.All 70 developers could conduct the 19,000 tests in parallel since the 50 not working with the 20 hardware units could still test using JETS’s virtual desktop client.In doing so, Performance Software not only eliminated the limitation imposed by the hardware, it also took a major leap forward with its VM platform.As a result, the supplier met schedule for the aircraft OEM, which would not have been possible without JETS.

The Results

New Levels of Efficiency: The JETS solution allowed Performance Software to conduct approximately 19,000 tests within the client’s timeline.

19,000 tests conducted on time

Increased Productivity: All 70 developers could test at the same time with over 70% of the team using the “virtual” target hardware.

100% developer engagement in and out of the lab

Technological Stepping Stone: JETS’s evolution during this program inspired concepts that are now used by many customers to increase software development efficiency.

Testing breakthroughs in new tech areas

Customer Satisfaction: The supplier was highly satisfied with Performance Software’s solution and its resourcefulness in helping to meet an otherwise impossible timeline.